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Mihr (Armenian Deity)
Mihr ( hy, Միհր) is the deity of the light of heaven and the god of Sun in ancient Armenian mythology. The worship of Mihr was centered in a region named Derjan, a district in Upper Armenia, currently located in eastern Turkish territories. The temple dedicated to Mihr was built in the locality of Bagayarich. Despite the fact that the Armenian Mihr was less prominent in Armenia than Mithra was in Persia, Mihr is the root of many Armenian proper names such as Mihran, Mihrdat and Mehruzhan. The Armenian pagan temple Mehian also has the same source. The month of February was dedicated to Mihr and it was called Mehekan. In 301 A.D. Christianity became the official religion of Armenia, and the Armenian church adopted many pagan rites and ceremonies. For example, the Christian fire-festival of Trndez, which has pagan roots, is still celebrated in February, the month dedicated to Mihr. Triad in Armenian paganism According to Vahan Kurkjian, the ideology behind the Armenian paganism has ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Armenian Mythology
Armenian mythology originated in ancient Indo-European traditions, specifically Proto-Armenian, and gradually incorporated Hurro-Urartian, Mesopotamian, Iranian, and Greek beliefs and deities."Armenia (Vannic)" by A.H. Sayce, p.793-4; "Armenia (Zoroastrian)", by M(ardiros). H. Ananikian, p.794-802; in Encyclopædia of Religion and Ethics, ed. James Hastingsvol. 1 1908 Formation of Armenian mythology The pantheon of Armenian gods, initially worshipped by Proto-Armenians, inherited their essential elements from the religious beliefs and mythologies of the Proto-Indo-Europeans and peoples of the Armenian Highlands. Historians distinguish a significant body of Indo-European language words which were used in Armenian pagan rites. The oldest cults are believed to have worshipped a creator called Ar (or possibly Ara), embodied as the sun (Arev or Areg); the ancient Armenians called themselves "children of the sun". Also among the most ancient types of Indo-European-derived worshi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Upper Armenia
Upper Armenia ( hy, Բարձր Հայք ''Bardzr Hayq'') was the first province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia, located in present-day Turkey, roughly corresponding to the modern province of Erzincan, to the west of the Kura River. Within the borders of the kingdom, it was bounded by the regions of Sophene, Turuberan, Tayk, and Ayrarat. It was called Upper Armenia, as it was higher in elevation than the other provinces. The total area of Upper Armenia was . It consisted of 9 cantons: * Daranaghi * Aghyun * Mzur * Yekeghyats * Mananaghi * Derjan * Sper * Shaghagom * Karin History Upper Armenia was famous for its lakes, rivers (especially the Euphrates), gold mines and fields. In the 2nd millennium BC, Upper Armenia's western parts were conquered by Hittite Empire; from the 15th century BC, it was conquered by Hayasa-Azzi. From 189 BC, it became part of the Kingdom of Armenia. Upper Armenia was famous for its pagan temples. From 62 AD, it became part of the Arsacid Dy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Turkestan
East Turkestan ( ug, شەرقىي تۈركىستان, Sherqiy Türkistan, bold=no; zh, s=东突厥斯坦; also spelled East Turkistan), is a loosely-defined geographical and historical region in the western provinces of the People's Republic of China, which varies in meaning by context and usage. The term was coined in the 19th century by Russian Turkologists, including Nikita Bichurin, who intended the name to replace the common Western term for the region, Chinese Turkestan, which referred to the Tarim Basin in the southwestern part of Xinjiang during the Qing Dynasty. The medieval Persian toponym "Turkestan" and its derivatives were not, however, used by the local population. The Uyghur name for the Tarim Basin is Altishahr, which means "Six Cities" in Uyghur. China from the Han Dynasty to Tang Dynasty had called an overlapping area the "Western Regions". The parts of this area controlled by China were termed "Xinjiang" from the 18th century on. Starting in the 20th century, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bagayarich
Bagayarich (also spelled Bagayarič, Bagarich or Bagarinch) was an ancient locality in the northwestern part of Armenia in the district of Daranali (or Daranałi . The site is located near the village of Cadırkaya (formerly Pekeriç) in Turkey's Erzincan Province, kilometers west of the modern city of Erzurum (ancient Karin). In ancient times, it housed the cult centre of the divinity Mihr (Mithra i.e. Mithras), the god of fire. Name The name of Bagayarich is attested in Greek by the ancient geographer and historian Strabo (died ) as *Bagaris and Basgoidariza, and by Ptolemy (died ), likewise in Greek, as *Bagarizaka. The modern Turkish name is Pekeriç, and its new official name of Cadırkaya means "tent-rock". Geography Bagayarich is located near the northeastern corner of the Pekeriç plain. This plain is separated from the Vican plain downstream on the Tuzla Su by a series of low hills. Bagayarich itself is located at the base of a large conical rock which historically wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mithra
Mithra ( ae, ''Miθra'', peo, 𐎷𐎰𐎼 ''Miça'') commonly known as Mehr, is the Iranian deity of covenant, light, oath, justice and the sun. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of Truth, and the guardian of cattle, the harvest, and of the Waters. The Romans attributed their Mithraic mysteries to Zoroastrian Persian sources relating to Mithra. Since the early 1970s, the dominant scholarship has noted dissimilarities between the Persian and Roman traditions, making it, at most, the result of Roman ''perceptions'' of Zoroastrian ideas. Etymology Together with the Vedic common noun '' mitra'', the Avestan common noun ''miθra'' derives from Proto-Indo-Iranian '' *mitrám'' (Mitra), from the root ''*mi-'' "to bind", with the "tool suffix" ''-tra-'' "causing to". Thus, etymologically ''mitra''/''miθra'' means "that which causes binding", preserved in the Avestan word for "Covenant, Contract, Oath". In M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan to the north, by Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east, and by the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf to the south. It covers an area of , making it the 17th-largest country. Iran has a population of 86 million, making it the 17th-most populous country in the world, and the second-largest in the Middle East. Its largest cities, in descending order, are the capital Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Karaj, Shiraz, and Tabriz. The country is home to one of the world's oldest civilizations, beginning with the formation of the Elamite kingdoms in the fourth millennium BC. It was first unified by the Medes, an ancient Iranian people, in the seventh century BC, and reached its territorial height in the sixth century BC, when Cyrus the Great fou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trndez
Trndez (also ''Tyarndarach'' and ''Candlemas Day'') is a feast of purification in the Armenian Apostolic Church and Armenian Catholic Churches, celebrated 40 days after Jesus' birth. The two churches celebrate this on different days, the 13th (with celebrations on the eve of the 14th of February) and the 2nd of February. The celebration of the Trndez is Zoroastrian in origin and is originally connected with Solar deity, sun/fire worship in ancient pre-Christian Armenia, symbolizing the coming of spring and fertility. See also *Chaharshanbe Suri References Observances in Armenia Armenian festivals Epiphany (holiday) Armenian Apostolic Church Armenian Catholic Church February observances Winter events in Armenia {{ArmenianCatholic-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Urartu
Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of Van, centered around Lake Van in the historic Armenian Highlands. The kingdom rose to power in the mid-9th century BC, but went into gradual decline and was eventually conquered by the Iranian Medes in the early 6th century BC. Since its re-discovery in the 19th century, Urartu, which is commonly believed to have been at least partially Armenian-speaking, has played a significant role in Armenian nationalism. Names and etymology Various names were given to the geographic region and the polity that emerged in the region. * Urartu/Ararat: The name ''Urartu'' ( hy, Ուրարտու; Assyrian: '; Babylonian: ''Urashtu''; he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') comes from Assyrian sources. Shalmaneser I (1263–1234 BC) recorded a campaign in wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ḫaldi
Ḫaldi ( d,''Ḫaldi'', also known as Khaldi) was one of the three chief deities of Urartu. He was a warrior god to whom the kings of Urartu would pray for victories in battle. Ḫaldi was portrayed as a man with or without wings, standing on a lion. His principle shrine was at Ardini (Muṣaṣir). The temples dedicated to Khaldi were adorned with weapons such as swords, spears, bows and arrows, and shields hung from the walls and were sometimes known as "the house of weapons". History According to Urartologist Paul Zimansky, Haldi was not a native Urartian god but apparently an obscure Akkadian deity (which explains the location of the main temple of worship for Haldi in Musasir, believed to be near modern Rawandiz, Iraq). Haldi was not initially worshipped by Urartians, at least as their chief god, as his cult does not appear to have been introduced until the reign of Ishpuini. According to Michael C. Astour, Haldi could be etymologically related to the Hurrian word "h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theispas
''Theispas'' (also known as Teisheba or Teišeba) of Kumenu was the Araratian (Urartian) weather-god, notably the god of storms and thunder. He was also sometimes the god of war. He is the son of Habli. He formed part of a triad along with Khaldi and Shivini. The ancient Araratian cities of Teyseba and Teishebaini were named after Theispas. He is a counterpart to the Assyrian god Adad, the Vedic God Indra, and the Hurrian god, Teshub. He was often depicted as a man standing on a bull, holding a handful of thunderbolts. His wife was the goddess Huba, who was the counterpart of the Hurrian goddess Hebat. See also *Teshup *Urartu *Teispes Teïspes (from Greek ; in peo, 𐎨𐎡𐏁𐎱𐎡𐏁 ''Cišpiš''; Akkadian: 𒅆𒅖𒉿𒅖 ''Šîšpîš'',Kent (1384 AP), page 394 Elamite: Zi-iš-pi-iš) ruled Anshan in 675–640 BC. He was the son of Achaemenes of Persis and an ancest ... References Urartian deities Sky and weather gods {{Armenia-hist-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shivini
Shivini ( xur, 𒀭𒅆𒄿𒌑𒄿𒉌, translit=dši-i-u2-i-ni), also known as Siuini, Artinis, Ardinis, was a solar god in the mythology of the Iron Age kingdom of Urartu in the Armenian Highlands. He is the third god in a triad with Khaldi and Theispas. The Assyrian god Shamash is a counterpart to Shivini. He was depicted as a man on his knees, holding up a solar disc. His wife was most likely a goddess called Tushpuea Tushpuea (Armenian:Տուշպուեա) is an Araratian (Urartian) goddess from which the city of Tushpa derived its name. She may have been the wife of the solar god Shivini Shivini ( xur, 𒀭𒅆𒄿𒌑𒄿𒉌, translit=dši-i-u2-i-ni), al ... who is listed as the third goddess on the Mheri-Dur inscription. Armen Petrosyan and other scholars argue that his name derives from a Hittite source, and is, therefore, of Indo-European origin.Petrosyan, Armen.Collegiality and Interchange in Armenian Studies. In: ''Journal of the Society for Armenian Studie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion and one of the world's History of religion, oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian peoples, Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a Dualism in cosmology, dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a Monotheism, monotheistic ontology and an eschatology which predicts the ultimate conquest of evil by good. Zoroastrianism exalts an uncreated and benevolent deity of wisdom known as ''Ahura Mazda'' () as its supreme being. Historically, the unique features of Zoroastrianism, such as its monotheism, messianism, belief in Free will in theology, free will and Judgement (afterlife), judgement after death, conception of heaven, hell, Angel, angels, and Demon, demons, among other concepts, may have influenced other religious and philosophical systems, including the Abrahamic religions and Gnosticism, Southern, Eastern and Northern Buddhism, Northern Buddhism, and Ancient Greek philosoph ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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